This is a discussion on New owner of 2014 WRX DGM Premium Sedan....have questions for little mods within the New Member Hangout forums, part of the Community - Meet other Enthusiasts category; Hey guys, I am new to the subaru forums as I just got my 14' WRX in February. I had ...

Hey guys, I am new to the subaru forums as I just got my 14' WRX in February. I had a daily driver of a pontiac grand prix that i took great care of. I certainly didn't need to sell it, but I had the car for 8 years and got bored of it....wanted something different. I was in my friend's 12' WRX hatchback and I was extremely impressed with all the amenities it had with functional body panels and such.

Over the winter I was just thinking over and over about a wrx. time came and I test drove a wagon and the sedan model right after each other to get a feel for what I liked better. I drove the sedan model first that actually came with the short throw shifter. I am going down the streets, giving it a spirited drive and i instantly fell in love with it. I loved how it handled, accelerated, etc. I then drove the wagon model after and I equally loved it, however for work I need to have more trunk space and I think for me it's more my style to be in a car.

I have had the car a few months and I wanted to buy some things to make it perform better, but i am worried of throwing a check engine light as i am driving. My main focus for when i got the car was to treat it as a daily driver with little mods to not void my 7 year warranty or have internal/electrical code problems with the car. My plan is to change out the head unit to the Pioneer NEX 6000 touch screen with satellite radio next month for my birthday and hopefully throw some performance mods on the car to make a little more power.

I am not looking for anything crazy that makes a major increase in HP, but to give it more power and be a little more faster.

I was hoping some people can answer some questions that I have for the parts I am looking to buy.

Parts from RSD:
1 - Perrin Top Mount Intercooler - If I install this piece alone will it throw an engine code? Is there a better top mount intercooler that people can attest to than a Perrin one?
2 - AEM Cold Air Intake - From what I can read about this won't throw a code, but if I want to get my bang for my buck I can get a tune to get better mpg/performance.
3 - Up pipe / Downpipe - I seen some connector piping that increases the air flow and eliminates the flex piece.
4 - Full Exhaust system - just a little more throaty but nothing crazy.

Any time you mod your running the risk of warranty denial, so be ready to pay out of your pocket for any repairs that SOA denies...I was thinking of the same mods but I just can`t risk a rebuild out of my pocket, that`s not to say SOA wont deny a stock WRX warranty claim either, it happens. It`s all up to you, you gotta pay to play sometimes....And with those mods you will need a tune....Congrats on the purchase, good luck

Exactly, if want to keep your warranty don't modify your vehicle. Although different dealers act differently, some take cars with mods and do warranty work, others wont even touch it.

Yep, my dealer sells the cobb AP, when I asked about warranty work, the service tech said to just flash it back to stock before I bring it in, I said, can I have that in writing and he just laughed......My car is fast enough for me without modding and risking warranty denial.

Hey guys, I am new to the subaru forums as I just got my 14' WRX in February. I had a daily driver of a pontiac grand prix that i took great care of. I certainly didn't need to sell it, but I had the car for 8 years and got bored of it....wanted something different. I was in my friend's 12' WRX hatchback and I was extremely impressed with all the amenities it had with functional body panels and such.

Over the winter I was just thinking over and over about a wrx. time came and I test drove a wagon and the sedan model right after each other to get a feel for what I liked better. I drove the sedan model first that actually came with the short throw shifter. I am going down the streets, giving it a spirited drive and i instantly fell in love with it. I loved how it handled, accelerated, etc. I then drove the wagon model after and I equally loved it, however for work I need to have more trunk space and I think for me it's more my style to be in a car.

I have had the car a few months and I wanted to buy some things to make it perform better, but i am worried of throwing a check engine light as i am driving. My main focus for when i got the car was to treat it as a daily driver with little mods to not void my 7 year warranty or have internal/electrical code problems with the car. My plan is to change out the head unit to the Pioneer NEX 6000 touch screen with satellite radio next month for my birthday and hopefully throw some performance mods on the car to make a little more power.

I am not looking for anything crazy that makes a major increase in HP, but to give it more power and be a little more faster.

I was hoping some people can answer some questions that I have for the parts I am looking to buy.

Parts from RSD:
1 - Perrin Top Mount Intercooler - If I install this piece alone will it throw an engine code? Is there a better top mount intercooler that people can attest to than a Perrin one?
2 - AEM Cold Air Intake - From what I can read about this won't throw a code, but if I want to get my bang for my buck I can get a tune to get better mpg/performance.
3 - Up pipe / Downpipe - I seen some connector piping that increases the air flow and eliminates the flex piece.
4 - Full Exhaust system - just a little more throaty but nothing crazy.

any feedback for what I am looking to do is appreciated!

Glad to be part of the subaru community!

We can all preach to you about keeping your warranty, but if you really are ready to modify your car, and thus risk paying for repairs that have resulted from said modifications, then your plans are not terrible. The one key item that you forgot to think about was your tuning method. These cars are very touchy to modifications, and the intake and exhaust system (really the down pipe), will require ECU management (tuning). Depending on the route you want to go, factor in the cost of that as well (Opensource tuning - a tactrix cable and and laptop, is a cheaper route, and the COBB access port is a little more expensive, but allows you to download off the shelf or "canned" tunes for free after you buy the device. Both can be used by MOST professional tuners). You must follow the tuning map notes to a T if you are going to tune via the access port and the OTS tune maps. This will dictate the type of cold air intake you use.

The TMIC while a nice mod (but to get results would require custom tuning, and on a WRX a stronger by pass valve), will really get taken advantage of after what is referred to as "Stage 2," or down pipe and a tune. Stage 2 is probably the most "bang for your buck" modification route you can go. Adding the intake adds a little bit at stage 2 levels in the GR's. I would recommend going stage 2 first, and then seeing if that is enough. If it is, then you might consider getting a professional tune (either live dyno tune, or e-tune over the internet), as this will be designed specifically for your car (and will yield better performance).

If you are happy with the stage 2 power, then look into doing some suspension/handling work (springs, struts, bushings (awesome bang for buck mods that you notice every time you drive), tires, customer alignment, sway bars/endlinks, etc). Heck, these are very good mods and I would argue you get more driving pleasure from these than the "power" mods.

If the power isn't enough at stage 2 levels (decide this after you have driven it around for a while) then you might consider upping the injector size, fuel pump, TMIC, BPV (by pass valve), etc, etc, etc...but that is a story for another day.

Well he did say he didn't want to void his 7 year warranty in the original post thats why i told him not to if he wants to have the peace of mind of not paying for anything.

I thought he said he avoided mods at first when he got his car, but now he wants to get more power and do some other performance mods, while avoiding a check engine light. So I provide feedback on that. If he didn't want to have any issues with his warranty (technically you don't ever "void" your warranty) then I wouldn't think he would need to ask us how to go about that

Don't worry, the intro to my post had no intention of offending anyone. It was simply how I chose to begin it.

There are threads about Warranty I dont know them off the top of my head so you may have to search them out. They may better give you ideas on what people do wither their car and warranties. If you dont want to risk it then I would get a cat back exhaust (check youtube or go to some meets to get some sound ideas) and then go with cosmetic mods. Like some said before you could go the route with flash the ecu and put all the stock parts if you have a problem and want to bring the car for service but thats never a guarantee it will work.

well...i guess it is sort of a double edged sword. first and foremost i don't want to see a check engine light, then i can sort of deal with my warranty aspect. i do truly love the car a lot stock. I love the way it handles already and even the power. Like i said before, I got rid of a perfectly good car to get into a wrx and so my mind is still about just enjoying it and using it as is for a daily driver. However, i feel if i can put some things on the car to make that just tad more enjoyable that would be great.

I have plans later this summer to buy engine dress up pieces and CAI at least.

I was looking at the stage 2 kit today from COBB ironically. I don't think i will get it just yet because i'd want to enjoy the car for a while before i think of doing anything.

I was also thinking of doing some suspension work too, such as sway bars and bushings on various things, coilovers, etc. My other car has KW coilovers and sway bars and those make the car feel great! So i know what you mean about other ways to enjoy the car and how the stage 2 kit will reach my power goals for sure.

right now I am in the process of learning about the maintenance of the car because i need to change the engine oil. I bought all magnetic drain plugs from RSD and oils. they are expected to both arrive by Friday so this weekend is go time! i want to take care of the car the best i can. My biggest surprise so far was hearing the tranny oil takes 75w90, but at the same time it makes sense because the front diff is in the same housing.

I'm also the owner of a 2014 Premium sedan. I got to say that it's my first Subie, and I love my car. I can tell you what I experienced on my end.

Like you, I only wanted to make small mods to try and keep my warranty intact. I started with a cold air intake, and cosmetic and dress parts -- aftermarket heat shield, graphics, window tint, carbon fiber side sill inserts, upgrading door speakers, subwoofers and big amp to push it all.

I was really lucky that a guy opened up a performance shop and does performance work on cars and Dyno tunes as well. He does all my work, and warranties his work, so I can buy all my parts close to wholesell and get him to install correctly.

Now, I will say, I have future plans to further mod the car, sway bars, up-pipe, down pipe, exhaust, COBB Access port, wheels and tires. However, I think I'm going to do the sway bars and wheels and tires before the performance parts to extend the length of my warranty.

Now to the warranty issues. We all know that a car manufacturer is going to search for ANYTHING to void a warranty and not eat the cost in repairing your vehicle. And let's face it, sometimes you have to get attorneys involved. I've hear a story once that a dealership voided a warranty because they upgraded from a 17-inch tire to an 18-inch tire -- they said the brakes weren't designed to proportionally handle the increase of one inch.

But this is what my dealership's service manager told me. Because I asked her specifically about the warranty and after-market performance parts, she said that when I brought my car into the dealership for the free oil changes, they would have to mark my file and notify SOA. That said, she said my cold air intake wouldn't nullify my warranty, but if the engine failed because of sucking water into the engine, then that part would nullify it.

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